LOST IN THE ABYSS OF THE SEA

LOST IN THE ABYSS OF THE SEA
Elba's POV

As I made my way toward the sea, I immediately spotted them. Giant rock armies of Alma's—about five of them—were positioned by the sea like they weren't supposed to let anyone near the water. But before I could even ponder how to make it past them, their eerily dark, shadowy eyes found mine. A monstrous scream tore from them as two of them made their way toward me.

Looking at Alda, who was still wrapped in my plant roots and under my control as she hung in the air, I immediately guided the vines away into the woods just within eyesight, having them wrap Alda securely up a tall tree. I then turned to face the giant rocks approaching me, their thundering footsteps shaking the ground beneath my feet.

With a deep sigh, I gently slipped into battle mode. Eyes closed, I took a deep breath, and when I opened them, my vine friends were already moving through the ground toward the approaching rocks.

I let them crawl around their feet before making their way up their bodies.

I needed to find their weak point. Everything controlled by a force of magic always has a weak point, and my guess was their heads.

But there was only one way to find out.

I led the vines as they began forming a chain around their feet and up to their necks. They struggled to free themselves, but their gaze never left mine.

Just when I thought this was going to be easier than I thought, another piercing scream tore from each of their throats, and the remaining two that stayed behind came running toward them.

Then their roaring screams stopped. Their dark, predatory eyes were still on me, but something was off. The other two made it to the three already wrapped in my vines, but they just stopped. They stood alongside the three facing me, their mouths opening wide before their jaws dropped rapidly open.

I didn't understand at first—until they began shooting something out of their mouths. It came at me with terrifying speed, giving me only a brief moment to see the tiny, sharp rock particles with jagged edges moving my way.

I immediately pulled my hands right in front of me, using the vines to form a shield. But as the sharp rocks hit the plant vines protecting me, the greenery went from alive to turning pitch black, withering away like ashes.

A gasp of shock escaped my lips when I realized those tiny rocks weren't just meant to slice someone open, but to leave you with a venom that would burn you until you turned to ashes while screaming from pain.

I knew I had to make a run for it when I noticed they were about to send yet another round of tiny rock bullets my way. Two out of the three I had bound in place had managed to pull out of their hold, leaving only one who seemed too focused on having me killed to shake off the grip of the vine plants holding the rest of his body up to his neck.

I ran toward them, avoiding every incoming shot from their mouths as I kept forming the chain around the one that persisted in shooting the toxic bullets my way. Once it was secured tightly around its neck, I immediately clasped my hands together, tightening the vine chain even stronger. Then, unclasping my hands apart, the vine chain immediately pulled the head off the one still shooting at me.

I tried my best to avoid the rocks coming my way, but having been caught up in trying to take one down, I got hit on both shoulders.

A horrifying pain shot through my entire body. The injuries instantly started burning like something was seeping into my system.

I fell flat on my face, struggling to comprehend the kind of venom that came with those rocks, while still managing to see the one whose head I ripped fall to the ground and melt into the soil.

Even though the venom was beginning to work its way up into my system, I still couldn't help but smile in victory.

All I had to do was make my way into the woods and let them follow. I needed the trees as my shield and hiding place so I could get rid of them one at a time.

Ignoring the pain traveling down my arms, I made a run for the woods before another barrage of rock bullets could be shot at me, and they followed.

I immediately made my way up a tall tree not too far into the woods, hiding behind the branches as the first one came into view.

It began aggressively scraping the trunk of each tree it passed, leaving behind its venom to dry them up in search of me.

I waited until it was right below me with its back turned before pouncing on it from behind, a rope of vine already in my grip. I wrapped it tightly around its neck as a fight broke out. It tried to grab my standing figure on its neck, but I held on tightly to the vines, letting my powers pull them tighter before leaping to a high tree, taking its head along with me.

Once I was secure on the tree, I let the head hanging from the vine hit the ground. Immediately, the dark, eerie eyes faded away like smoke carried by the wind, and the rest of its body melted back into the soil like the first one.

A massive amount of sweat broke out on my skin from the venom that was still burning my arms and causing me intense pain.

I took out a small dagger from my pocket as I stared at my arms, seeing the venom—looking like moving, melted lead—traveling down my hands. Without hesitating, I cut my arms open and sucked the venom out.

I did it with both arms until the venom was gone, then immediately healed my injuries, finally getting a little relief from the pain. Afterward, I moved to find the three remaining rock monsters, picking them off one at a time and making sure they all went back to the soil.

Leaving the trees that had helped me, I retrieved Alda from where I had hidden her before making my way toward the sea.

I walked deeper into the water with Alda floating behind me, but another challenge awaited: How do I get her to the Throne Stone without my Almaruda power, which would have been our way of reaching the cave without worry?

I secured the vines holding Alda tightly around my waist before making a dive for it, not minding that I might actually not make it.

I kept swimming deeper and deeper, but with time, I could feel my lungs beginning to burn. Still, I didn't stop. I kept moving, driven by pure desperation. At some point, it felt like the pain in my chest was about to swallow me whole. I found myself struggling for air and tried to make my way back to the surface, but I couldn't reach it as I gently slipped into the consuming darkness.

Siofra's POV

“We need to fight. I know you want to save your friend, but please leave that to your angry friend—I have a feeling she will bring her back, so focus on this. Take a look around. This is the whole of Álfheimr being held above the sea like they're sacrificial lambs waiting to be slaughtered. They are the reason you were paired with the gemstones and their powers, so we fight,” Valeria said as I looked around at the rock armies surrounding the sea.

Alma had made sure that the ones holding the elves hostage lined up from deep in the sea, where she had parted the waters, all the way down to the shore, leaving another massive stretch of land to keep anyone from entering.

I let out a heavy sigh before wrapping my hands around the glowing rope in my arms. I took a long, deep breath, assuring myself that Elba would find a way to bring Alda back.

“Let's do this,” I muttered to the two goddesses before me.

“Sweet. Let's go rip some heads off,” Nymeria said with a hint of excitement before she and Valeria retreated back into my body. I felt their power radiating through me.

“Let them lead you,” Grandma said before she moved forward. I followed, making our way toward the giant rocks aggressively rushing toward us with nothing but destruction in their eyes.